


Midweek Rescue

by throed (11dishwashers)



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, M/M, deliveryboy! ten, pizza deliveryboy au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-06
Updated: 2017-07-06
Packaged: 2018-11-28 17:18:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,329
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11422554
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/11dishwashers/pseuds/throed
Summary: Johnny's lonely on his birthday, and maybe a little desperate, too.*'Can you send your cutest deliveryboy?'*





	Midweek Rescue

Johnny has never been the type to mope around in a dressing gown and sweatpants. He's the type to wear them, sure, but he's not the type to mope. 

But today calls for it. He lies aimlessly on the sofa, upside down so his hair's on the ground. The tv's making his eyes burn. That's not the problem. Being alone isn't the problem, either, just part of it. He knows why he's upset- has been avoiding it all day. He won't have to avoid it tomorrow. 

Without thinking, he dials.

After the chirpy cashier girl greets him and asks for his order, and after they discuss any deals(he is dead set on ordering the greatest amount of food possible, so the weight of the grease will be more than his body mass), he settles on the  midweek rescue meal. It is a friday, after all. Two large pizzas, drinks, tubs of ice cream that Jaehyun would be jealous of- all for him, and him alone. 

"Anything extra you wanna add?" the girl asks, and Johnny can hear her tapping the cold hard plastic casing of the phone with her fingernails. Click click. Does he want anything extra? Click click.

"Oh shit, yeah actually," he says, upon a very important epiphany. An action he must take. The tv isn't on minimum volume, though it should be. He likes the background noise, even if there's a terrible show on that reminds him of Dr. Phil and the couple might start shouting if he leaves it on for too long. He wonders if the noise goes through the phone at all. 

"What is it?" The girl then asks, happy tone deteriorating as it's replaced by impatience. 

"Send your cutest delivery boy."

She can't see him wink, but then again, he can't see her roll her eyes either. 

 

Ten heads out on the bike, which is fairly more dangerous than the car. He prefers the bikes though, regardless- the unnatural lights scribbling across his peripherals and how it feels when it accelerates beneath him(and because of him). That doesn't mean he likes his job, though. Especially when Sooyoung suggested him for this 'special order' just when he was heading home. And so, his collar isn't on right, he's very close to just running a few pedestrians over, he  grows an irrational hatred for Sooyoung herself. But none of this is irrational in his head. It may be midterms but he still can't seem to get enough of sleeping whenever he gets the chance- he misses his bed dearly, and its stupid pikachu duvet. And no one gets in the way of that. No one.

Except for Sooyoung, apparently.

"You should be flattered! How many times have you been called cute before, huh?" puh-lease. The implication, too.

He pulls up to an address on his own campus, which is nothing new. He'd brought a delivery out to some frat party earlier around the same place- they'd tried to persuade him to do some shots like some sort of clown. He hopes this order goes smoother, at least. Less alcohol.

This dorm particularly, is quiet. He'd parked the bike somewhere near and walked up some stairs and found himself in an abandoned place, probably. There's no semblance of life. Beneath him, and rolled along the halls, is a crusty old hotel carpet that he's scared to look at for too long for fear of phantom footprints appearing. He knocks on the white door before him, there's no ringer. 

The man who answers the door looks like he's been pouring nyquil into his eyes for the entirety of the day. It's the lower lash line, disgustingly red. Otherwise, he's smoking hot(like the pizza boxes in Ten's hands, they're burning him, fucking hell) and it's irritating. Ten wants to go to bed. "Oh, didn't think they'd listen to me," the man says quietly before his face does this odd thing where it fights between a self satisfied smirk and a self satisfied grin. So this is how it is.

"What?" 

"Nothing," the man replies, then he thankfully takes the boxes from Ten's arms and puts them on some wayward chair that's found itself in the hall, which is exceedingly small. It's a mirrored version of Ten's own dorm. Ten then hands him the bags of drinks and ice cream, wondering if the man's going to share it with the arguing couple he can hear inside. 

"That'll be 26 dollars," Ten tells him. Waits. After some grumbling, the cash is handed over a little hesitantly.

Just when Ten's about to throw himself out the window just so he can get home faster, he hears the man say "wait!"

"What is it?" Ten asks, not bothering to mask the impatience in his voice. Sure, this guy's hot, but Ten's off work hours and he's still wearing his stupid red uniform, collar not done up and all. The man flinches at his tone, then looks a bit like a kicked puppy.

"I'll tip you an extra 20 dollars if you watch this movie with me," he says a little shamelessly, still looking tragic. Ten groans internally.

"That's really sad-" he glances at the order label sticker which is on the back of his hand, "-Johnny."

"I am sad," Johnny admits. It's obvious, to be honest with you. So worn out, and maybe he's the phantom who would hypothetically leave footprints on the shag carpet. 

Ten sighs a very short sigh, to reflect on his own impatience at the situation. "What movie is it?"

"I have a few," Johnny says, perking up a bit. "I'm doing film studies."

Ah, so that's where Ten saw him before. Johnny's that guy who always shows up to lectures both 20 minutes late and with his hood up, probably to avoid embarrassment from being 20 minutes late. Ten doesn't think he's ever seen his hair before, which is sad because it's actually nice- light brown and sideparted. A bit tazed at the ends, if he's honest, but soft at the roots. Yes, Ten's staring. This might be his last chance to see it again. Unless... "Sure," he says, surprising himself more than Johnny. "But I have to bring the money and bike back, I'll come over after, alright?"

Johnny looks like he just got told that he's going to be watching a *whole movie* with Ten's lovely self, probably because that's exactly what happened. But the way he brightens up is way better than when he looked like he was just raised from the dead by lucifer himself- he has one of those crazy smiles that look awful in photos but are always so cute in real life. Deranged. "I'll look forward to it..."

"Ten."

"I'll look forward to it, Ten," he says. "God knows I can't finish all this food by myself."

Ten had wondered about that. Hopefully there isn't actually an arguing couple in there, and it'll just be them. Not because of the prospect of being alone together, but more because he doesn't exactly feel like meeting two other people today after he dealt with Johnny AND a frat party. And Sooyoung too, he supposes. He nods, for lack of anything better to say. Hopefully the ride back up and down will burn off some of the ice cream he'd eaten for dinner so he'll have space for more. 

But then again, he'll just be sitting on the bike, so maybe not. 

 

To be entirely honest, Ten considers not going back at all. The thought of being paid to spend time with someone is a nice throwback to his escort days and all, but this time it feels less like *getting paid yasssss* and more like babysitting a supposedly mopey Johnny. 

But then again, it has it's benefits, besides the enticing 20 dollars he's been promised- for starters, he'll get to make a friend in his course. Which is sadly hard for him. He's already a steaming ball of *fuck off* but adding the fact that he's balancing a newish language and an even newer country, and then it's super hard to even try to function in group projects. Sure, befriending the guy who laughed the whole way through 'Blue is the Warmest Colour' because of the nudity isn't ideal, but he'll take what he can get at this point. (and okay, Johnny's a little cutie, but that's besides the point!!!!!!!!!!!!!!) Coupled with guilt, he has no choice but to go back basically. He goes into the employees bathroom and does some squats in the stall. He usually does 30 a day, but now he's fully prepared to eat the amount of food that'd feed a small family for a week, and he needs to make sure his ass gets perkier, and not just bigger.

"How was the delivery?" Sooyoung asks knowingly, practically as soon  as he steps out. She's been watching her little CCTV screens probably. No one gets their pizza for collection at this time. Except for the occasional teenager wearing a bubble jacket, and then they'll basically make the whole room tense while they lean against the tiled wall and wait for their order. 

Ten contemplates not responding, even though he actually likes Sooyoung, and she's helped him earn the 20 dollars he's about to get by proclaiming him the cutest delivery boy(not much competition but he's flattered). "Oh, just *great*," he settles with an old favourite; sarcasm. Sooyoung gives him an unimpressed look.

"Was he a creep?"

"I wouldn't say that," Ten replies, honestly. "I'm just a little pissed about doing an extra delivery."

"I wouldn't have sent him if the address wasn't on your campus," Sooyoung says, and that's why she's actually a good friend most of the time, and why Ten appreciates her so much. 

"I'm going back to his now," Ten admits, just to see her reaction. It doesn't disappoint- her eyes go all wide, yet sharp, she reminds him of a cat sometimes. Most of the time. She smiles in a way that's known to mean 'I'll need details'. "But not for that!!! ...yet," he adds, maybe too eagerly. He feels his neck go all hot under the skin, like he's sunburnt. 

"Alright, I believe you," she lies. "Just don't get murdered... unless it's consensual."

He rolls his eyes, smiles,  and steps out the door without another word. His own bike awaits. 

 

Ten arrives back at Johnny's wearing the same red polo shirt. It smells like grease, predictably enough. But he tells himself he's not trying to impress anyone, and he's *definitely* trying not to impress Johnny. 

"Wow," says Johnny, for some indiscernible reason. He stands away from the door, and looks slightly guilty as Ten steps inside. Maybe he's feeling pre-murder remorse or something. Ten thinks back to what Sooyoung said, and feels thrown off as he stands awkwardly in Johnny's sitting room. There's no couple in the room, but there is one on the tv screen, which has a new layer of dust on it that seems to build from the stack of dvd cases practically decaying on top of it. It's one of those boxy models that Ten used to have in his bedroom when he was really young, and sometimes when he had nightmares he'd imagine there was someone watching him through it as he woke up in cold sweat (he's still sort of skittish, to be honest). 

Ten doesn't understand Johnny's guilt until he notices about 70 percent of the food eaten already, and the ice cream quickly melting. All laid out on the coffee table. 

"Sorry," Johnny says sheepishly, "I didn't think you'd come back... so, um, yeah..."

"It's fine," Ten tells him, though he did squats for nothing. But it really is fine, he guesses, and Johnny seems less sad now already so it's all good. He nervously sits down on the sofa, which is so plush that it no longer feels like he's sinking into it, but more like it's growing around him. The room's a mess, but whatever.

"My neat freak roommate went home for midterms," Johnny says, kneeling in front of the tv stand to go through the aforementioned heap of dvds. "So it's just me now."

"You two must fight a lot," Ten says, eyeing the assortment of half full mugs just under the (glass, unfortunately) coffee table. They're not filled with coffee, or tea, but with what appears to be mountain dew. 

"How'd you tell?" Johnny turns back and shoots him a smile over his shoulder. Ten frowns away his endearment. "And no, not really, we're actually close- hey have you seen Clueless?"

Ten has seen Clueless. Maybe even over 20 times. Actually, definitely over 40 times. It was his sister's favourite movie, and Ten used to """"""""borrow"""""" her dvds because he only had stupid bob the builder box sets with terrible dubbing, and to make the long story short, Ten can now talk like a teenage girl in english if he wants to. Perks of being bilingual, he supposes. "Never," he says, but he's not sure why he says it. 

"Oh, you *have* to see it now, I think it has subtitles-"

"I speak english," Ten says, in english for whatever reason. It feels much more comfortable than his awkward korean he's aware he has. 

"Um," Johnny says, and he slips the disc into the drive before sitting down a safe distance from Ten(0.5-1 meter, if you needed specifics). He looks a little lost, in his own sitting room. A little red, too. "I'm American," he adds after a long time, in English. "You're not Korean, are you?"

"I'm from Bangkok," Ten tells him, again, he's not sure why. He's not sure of anything. Tonight is weird. But a part of him, however small, is glad that it'll be easier to talk to Johnny now.

Before Johnny can respond, the Warner Bros logo flashes across the screen, and Ten's already repeating the opening lines in his head. It goes quiet for a long time then, and he almost forgets Johnny's there. Which doesn't last long- somewhere along the line, one of them(or both of them, Ten admits begrudgingly) starts scooching closer until they're NOT within Ten's Safe Distance Guidelines. And he can't move over now, because it'll be obvious. 

When the screen finally dims and they're left in sort of darkness(the screen dims to blue, blue, blue), Johnny says "You lied."

"What?"

"You said you never saw Clueless, but I heard you muttering the lines under your breath," Johnny says, eyes wide and serious, like he's offended. Then he bursts out laughing. Ten presses his lips together in an embarrassed line. "No need to be shy over things like that, I'm the one who paid you to watch a fucking movie with me," Johnny tells him, grinning widely. He seems to find the situation funny. Ten somewhat agrees. 

"Why tonight?" he asks, suddenly. 

"What do you mean?"

"What's so urgent that you have a crisis and order enough food to kill a small hamster and ask for the cutest delivery boy and then pay me to watch-"

"It's my birthday," Johnny blurts, then clamps a hand over his mouth before laughing at his own misfortune again. The laugh sounds a bit grating, more so than usual, and it's worrying that it's worrying. He's clearly upset, but Ten doesn't know the first thing about comforting people. "Everyone went home for midterms, but I couldn't because my home's on the other side of the fucking planet, and so I'm stuck here with some cute stranger who apparently needs money enough to sit here and tolerate me. No offense, by the way- you're the highlight of this really shitty day."

"I didn't know," Ten replies, because he can't deal with people sometimes, as much as he wishes he could.

"We've already established that we're strangers," Johnny replies with a sigh. "Sorry. I needed to rant."

"Happy birthday, Johnny," Ten says then, managing a smile. He doesn't move from the sofa. He doesn't think Johnny wants him to, anyway. 

They just sit there for a bit, listening to the disc spinning to find its beginning in the dvd player. Remaining strangers. But there's a lot Ten wants to say, about how he also can't go home, and about how he's just been sleeping all day without Yuta to force him out of the house, and about how he thought Johnny's stupid comments in class were really funny, and about how he doesn't have friends in his course, and about how he loves Clueless because his sister does, and about how he used to think someone was watching him through the tv at night, and about how he'd never seen Johnny's hair before today, and about how he likes it, and about how Sooyoung sent him to deliver Johnny's pizza, and about how he's grateful for it. Even if they're strangers. They don't have to be, not really. But Ten can't bring himself to say anything, as he's so used to avoiding conversations, since he's so ashamed of his own korean. He really hated it here at the start, but he doesn't say that either. He never does what he wants. 

"Are you okay?" Johnny asks, after a little longer. The disc gives up and the spinning noise quietens. 

"I think so," Ten says, "you?"

"I think so, too," Johnny ruffles Ten's hair without even asking first, and it gets all puffed up and annoying, like raised velvet. He hoists his sleeve up to show a watch that he very clearly doesn't use much, and says a simple "it's nearly eleven..."

"You want me to go?" Ten asks.

"No, I just thought you'd be tired of me, or your job, or something else."

"Maybe I am," Ten leans into Johnny a bit more, and doesn't say anything else, letting the conversation slip away. He sighs, sort of happy. Improvement. 

 

Ten does leave in the end, and he feels that 20 dollar note burning through the fabric of his black trousers so he'll have an odd, rectangle shaped scar on his thigh where it once was. He doesn't say what he wants, except for when he doesn't want it. He doesn't get what he wants, even if it's just a cute boy's number, and it makes him depressed. 

He slips out of his uniform and lies in bed in his socks, ass numb from doing extra, frustrated rounds of the campus on his bike. He wishes he could have one of those super cushioned seats on girls' bikes. But he doesn't, so there you go.

And he'd been so pissed off with himself for letting his opportunity of making a new friend slip like that. He could've just said it, could've just said "hey do you have snapchat?" and then they'd still be talking, and he wouldn't be glancing at his tv occasionally, lying on his duvet because he can't be bothered to move. He's so bad at talking, it's the worst. Regret keeps him company until he drifts off. Stupid.

 

A week later, he flops onto his regular chair at the start of his first class of term. Opens his spiralbound notebook to where they left off, lines the page. He slept for a good chunk of midterms and remains exhausted. So exhausted that he almost misses the figure slipping into the seat next to him, a good twenty minutes late. 

"Hey," Johnny says, like it's normal for them to talk. 

Ten smiles gratefully. "Hey," he says.

 

On the 27th of february, maybe 2 weeks later, Johnny picks up a slice of pizza and the mozzarella sticks to the cardboard and unravels from the dough. He groans, and all Ten can say is a "I told you to order from somewhere else."

"As if," Johnny scoffs and eats his slice of dough. "It's practically tradition at this point."

"We’ve only done this twice, idiot," Ten says, eyes sparkling.

**Author's Note:**

> idk what happened to this


End file.
